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Kolkata : OT infections have always been a serious concern as they can turn fatal. To keep such infections at bay, Apollo Gleneagles Hospitals, Kolkata has equipped its Central Sterile Supply Dept (CSSD) as per international standards rivaling the best healthcare institutes around the world. Such steps have ensured extremely low OT infection rates, much lower than the global average — 0.53% as against 3 to 21 per cent internationally.

Present on the occasion, Mr. Andrew Cserey, International Business Development Manager, Steelco SpA, Italy, highlighted the procedures followed in CSSD. According to him, any surgical instrument used in hospitals is made free of microorganisms by CSSD through five major steps – decontamination, assembly, sterilization, sterile storage and distribution. Cleaning is a basic initial step in medical device reprocessing procedures. Yet, proper cleaning is important to ensure the effectiveness of downstream reprocessing steps such as sterilization / disinfection. It is done to prevent nosocomial infection (hospital acquired infection). Also present at the occasion, Mr. Tapan Kumar Das, Head, CSSD, AGHL and Examiner of WB University of Health Sciences, shared the importance of CSSD along with significance of each step, machines and how absence of it can be fatal for any patient. “As per international standards, CSSD in Apollo Gleneagles Hospitals, Kolkata has three steps of cleaning after every usage. These involve manual cleaning with enzymatic solution and water at 30 to 40 degree Celsius, machine disinfection with water at 90 degree Celsius (Apollo CSSD ensures reverse osmosis or RO water is used) and finally sterilization with 121 degrees Celsius with pressure bar at 1.2 followed by 134 degree Celsius temperature and pressure bar 2.1.” Apollo Gleneagles Hospitals Kolkata is also equipped with the latest plasma sterilization, which sterilizes laparoscopy instruments. The hospital is the winner of Asia Pacific Society Infection Control for CSSD. Apollo Gleneagles Hospitals Kolkata also records extremely low surgical side infection standard of 0.53% while the average world rate is around 3-21%. Dr. Sushan Mukhopadhyaya, director & senior consultant, cardiothoracic vascular surgeon and Dr. Aveek Kar, consultant orthopedic surgeon, AGHL, mentioned how lack of proper CSSD can lead to and prove to be fatal for patients undergoing even simple surgeries.